HTC

Android 4.0 was first seen on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus six months ago. Still, millions of Android device owners are waiting for their Ice Cream Sandwich. Thanks to the folks at Engaget, we have a list of the official downloads for the most popular legacy devices that have ICS, as well as those that the manufacturers have promised updates for in the future.

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Samsung has done the best job so far at adding Ice Cream Sandwich to many of their unlocked devices -- the Samsung Galaxy S 2 in particular. Samsung’s list shows a lot more on their way, but updates to branded devices seem to stall in carrier-specific testing. Galaxy Tab users outside of Canada are still waiting for ICS.

HTC offers two different versions of Sense on ICS: Sense 4 for phones natively supporting ICS, and another for legacy devices. If you own one of the devices listed below, you'll have Sense 3.6, the "lighter" iteration that stays true to the UI's older look.

Motorola has a forum page for progress on each device. A large number of phones and tablets not on this list are still in "evaluation and planning" stages. By that, Motorola means they are under consideration for receiving ICS, but not all of them will see it. The devices below will get an upgrade.

LG is taking its time getting ICS to its legacy devices. The company has plans for most of its latest handsets, but only a few phones will get ICS before the end of June. The rest will have to wait until the third quarter.

Google jumped its final hurdle in its $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility with China approving the deal. The next step may involve layoffs for Motorola Mobility employees in the near future. According to Tech Crunch, layoffs could be on the list of things to do after the deal closes.

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Motorola went through one restructuring after the announcement of the Google acquisition last year. When the announcement went public, Motorola had 19,000 employees. Later that year about 800 employees were laid off. Neither Google nor Motorola have confirmed the possibility of upcoming layoffs.

"I'm excited to announce today that our Motorola Mobility deal has closed," said Larry Page, Google CEO. "Motorola is a great American tech company that has driven the mobile revolution, with a track record of over 80 years of innovation, including the creation of the first cell phone. We all remember Motorola's StarTAC, which at the time seemed tiny and showed the real potential of these devices. As the company who made a big, early bet on Android, Motorola has become an incredibly valuable partner to Google."

While the news of any layoffs under any circumstances is bad news, maybe Google can turn the phone- maker around. Motorola has been in trouble for awhile now. Earlier this month, the company reported a fifth straight quarter of losses including a net loss of $86 million for the first quarter of 2012. In previous consecutive quarters, Motorola reported net losses in the low $80 million area. Motorola hasn’t been able to figure out how to compete with other Android device manufacturers like Samsung and HTC.

Google also announced today that Motorola Mobility CEO Sanjay Jha has stepped down and Google executive Dennis Woodside will take over.

HTC and Apple are battling it out in a patent dispute. As a result, shipments of the HTC EVO 4G LTE and HTC One X smartphones have been held up by United States Customs as part of an International Trade Commission investigation.

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This action has caused Sprint to delay the launch of their EVO 4G LTE device indefinitely. AT&T is reporting that its supply of HTC One X will be taxed due to the ongoing fight between HTC and Apple. Before the phones can clear U.S. Customs, the ITC will need to determine if HTC’s latest handsets are in compliance with an earlier ruling.

A spokesman from HTC said, “The US availability of the HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G LTE has been delayed due to a standard U.S. Customs review of shipments that is required after an ITC exclusion order. We believe we are in compliance with the ruling and HTC is working closely with Customs to secure approval. The HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G LTE have been received enthusiastically by customers and we appreciate their patience as we work to get these products into their hands as soon as possible.”

Sprint had planned a May 18th launch of the EVO 4G LTE, a customized version of the One X. It was going to be available for $199.99 on contract. AT&T launched their version of the One X earlier this month. The device now shows as out of stock on the AT&T website.

HTC has officially revealed its latest Android smartphone, the HTC Desire C. With Beats Audio (without the headphones) and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich with Sense 4.0, Desire C is a nice little device for the entry-level market. The Desire C includes a 3.5-inch HVGA touchscreen and a 5-megapixel camera. The handset is 12mm thick and boasts a durable metal frame. This superb smartphone also provides an inherent audio system based on the legendary Beat by Dr. Dre

The phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 chipset with a CPU of 600MHz. The actual chipset model number isn’t yet known, but the best guess has it as the MSM7225A with a Cortex-A5 CPU and 512MB RAM (the same one that powers the Explorer).

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The HTC Desire C also has some nice extras. Owners get 4GB of built-in storage (plus 25GB cloud space from Dropbox for 2 years), a microSD card slot, 3G with 7.2Mbps HSDPA, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi and USB 2.0. The battery has 1230mAh capacity, and users can access it themselves.

Just like they told us at the Mobile World Congress earlier this year, HTC has got some new presents on their way to you HTC One series owners in the form of a revamped Media Link HD product and its Car offering. They’re finally giving us a few more hints about what’s in store with it.

HTC recently released two new YouTube clips describing some of the technology which includes two specially designed dongles, and a snazzy on-phone interface, and the software/hardware combo streams audio and/or video to your output medium of choice.

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If you’re one of those new HTC One series owners of needing a new gadget fix, the HTC website promises that the new systems will be available "this April". Oh wait, it’s June. Well, we’re sure they meant April 2012.

The latest results are in for NPD Group’s monthly Mobile Phone Track service. It looks like Apple retails it’s top seat as the #1 smartphone vendor in the U.S.

Apple’s market ownership continues to strengthen. It’s market share increased by 7% in the first quarter year-over-year. In the past year, Apple’s iPhones were responsible for 29% of all smartphone sales in the U.S. Samsung with Its Samsung Galaxy S2 and the Samsung Galaxy Tablets seems to be the only company breathing anywhere down Apple’s neck.

Why the confusion? Many analyst interpret market data differently... in addition a giant like Apple would react fervently to any news saying that its market position has been upset

Apple and Samsung together are responsible for 53% of all smartphones sold in the U.S. LG, HTC, Motorola and RIM sales continue to fall.

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“Samsung is the only market leader from the feature phone era to transition to market leadership in the smartphone era in the U.S.,” said NPD analyst Ross Rubin. “Its broad carrier support and advertising – particularly in the ascendant pre-paid segment – have helped it achieve the highest market share among Android handset providers in the U.S.”

NPD also reported that Google’s Android operating system is the highest selling mobile platform. Android use is trending in the right direction, and it regained some of the ground it had previously lost to Apple.

Android smartphone sales grew 24% over the last quarter of 2011 to 61% of the market. Apple iPhone sales are down significantly. The high of 41% in the last quarter is now 29%, a decline of 29%.

Apple is still the People’s Phone. Regardless of what the market share number shows, Apple’s iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS still hold the top three spots in NPD’s overall handset ranking for first quarter of 2012. Samsung’s Galaxy S2 and HTC’s EVO 3D round out the top five.

Rubin tries to explain what the poll number show: “After some release of pent-up demand from customers adopting the iPhone 4S, coupled with the company’s strength in the holiday season, Apple’s share fell in the first quarter, as we’ve often see it do in the quarter following its introduction of a new handset. Now that the iPhone is available on Sprint, though, the increased carrier coverage has created a higher baseline for Apple’s share than we have seen in the past.”

This little hack will let you get the most out of your One X battery

Word on the street about the HTC One X from both users and critics is generally positive. However, there is one complaint that is pretty prevalent: battery life. Ever heard that before?

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Well, it looks like we don’t have to just wallow in acceptance of this all-to-typical problem. There appears to be a solution:

A developer on xda-developers forum has concluded that the poor battery life is due to an issue with the Nvidia Tegra 3 power management controls. The power control app, NvCPLSvc.apk, is in the wrong place. It has been placed in the system/bin folder instead of the system/app folder.

HTC Media Link’s maiden voyage at last year’s Mobile World Congress did not make much of a splash. The second go-around at this year’s MWC out-razzles and out-dazzles its predecessor. The HTC Media Link is a WiFi adapter that lets consumers make use of their HDTV to stream video, music, and pictures via DLNA.

That basic concept hasn’t changed since last year, but the product has been significantly refined to improve the end users’ experience. And, with the 2012 version you can wirelessly stream your phone display – oh the possibilities! With fairy godmother-like precision, a three-finger swipe of the display on the HTC One X or HTC One S will magically bring your display to the big screen via the Media Link.

This means bringing your web browsing session to the TV, or your Angry Birds game, or your email, or your applications. What is really magical about this year’s device is that you can show a feature film streaming from your phone to your home theatre. Does this mean you have to be phone free while the film is being shown? No sir! With a simple touch of the home button, this wonderful piece of smartphone gadgetry and accessorizing lets you continue to use your cell phone. Including phone calls!

To bring the smartphone display back to the palm of your hand, another downward swipe of three fingers on the display will do the trick. For HTC fans that want to maximize the utility of their devices without adding to the tech clutter in the home, this could be the alternative to a docking station.

While there have not been announcements around the availability of this nifty accessory, anyone who uses the media player functionality, apps, games and the many other capabilities of their HTC will add this to the must-have accessory list when suiting up their new HTC One S or HTC One X this spring.

Perhaps the best ways to discover useful apps is to look at what people are actually updating, and not focus on which apps have the most installs. This is a good indicator of those apps having active support from their developers..

The following is the Pure MobileTop 10 list of apps which were updated in the last seven days and received the most updates during that time period on AppAware.

Twitter – Version 3.1.0

What’s new in this version:

Swipe shortcut

Improved scrolling and network performance

Improved support for devices running Ice Cream Sandwich

Confirmation dialog for Find Friends

Security improvements

New languages: Filipino, Simplified Chinese

Many other bug fixes, improvements, and polish

This week Twitter rolled out a minor update focused on performance enhancements. Some power users prefer more control over their Twitter experience and go with apps like Tweakdeck, but if you just want pure Twitter then the official app is the way to go. The improved scrolling makes this version a must update.

Evernote – Version 3.5.3

What’s new in this version:

Note: calendar access is used to add context in empty titles.

fixes note processing issue when saving notes

fixes a crash when installing the update

improves setting interface

several other fixes and improvements

There are a lot of note taking apps out there, but Evernote is the most popular by far. It currently has 10 million installs and maintains an average rating of 4.6.

Most other 2.3 devices have unofficial support. Please see the FAQ in the App description to learn how to enable it.

Android Beam support. Requires the NFC permission.

Media is now saved in a separate folder.

Finally a paid app makes the Top 10 list. Paper Camera retails for $1.99, but it’s well worth the price if you love taking photos with your phone. This app allows real time cartoon and painting effects displayed on your camera feed and adds many other effects to your photos.

Wiki Encyclopedia – Version 2.19

What’s new in this version:

**NEW PERMISSIONS*** New permissions are requested in the latest update in order to enable new features:

I have personally used this app countless time... it has over 5 million installs with an average rating of 4.4. Wiki Encyclopedia offers fast access to Wikipedia for your Android phone and also supports dozens of newspaper feeds. The latest update adds a widget and the ability to upgrade to the Pro version for free.

Viber – Version 2.1.4.588

What’s new in this version:

Bug Fixes

All new Voice engine!

Viber is now location-aware! Share your current location with your contacts so that they will know from where your message was sent.

Send and receive Photos.

New “is typing” indicator will notify you when he or she is typing a new message.

Landscape support for Messages.

While I personally have never used this app, Viber allows you to call and text other Viber users, on any network, as much as you want. The app is available on Andorid and iPhone, which explains why they have over 40 million users. The latest update has a new voice engine that promises “HD sound quality.”

Fix bugs of Pattern Lock may frozen after trying wrong input for 5 times

Fix some other minor bugs

It is one of the most full featured SMS apps and it’s great for Android phones that have crappy custom UIs that replace the default message app. The latest update is mostly bug fixes and optimizations, but give it a try if you are tired of your boring old SMS app.

Movies by Flixster – Version varies with device

What’s new in this version:

New “My Movies” tab to see your movie reviews, collections, and friends’ movies

Merged Box Office and Upcoming into a single tab

Fixed Facebook logout crash on ICS

Numerous other bug fixes and improvements

Flixster is one of the most popular movies apps. The latest version includes a new “My Movies” feature that might be worth checking out if you like to log all the movies you watch.

Dropbox – Version varies with device

What’s new in this version:

Allows you to automatically uploads photos and videos in the background using Wi-Fi or data plan

Heads up, Dropbox can no longer be installed on your SD Card due to more secure credential storage

Dropbox is currently being used at Pure Mobile. Their latest app adds support for automatic uploads of your photos, a feature that’s been available on Google+ for awhile now. They are also offering up to 3 GB of free cloud storage, but then again Box is offering 50 GB for free.

Astrid – Version varies with device

What’s new in this version:

Entirely new design and themes

Subtasks!

Ability to outsource tasks with TaskRabbit

More reliable sync with Google Tasks

Tablet version!

Fixes for a few bugs experienced in 4.0.0 launch

New permission GPS Only used when you specify location for tasks through TaskRabbit

Astrid has been available on Android for a long time and they continue to release new updates that add a ton of features. If you are looking for a personal assistant to help you manage your tasks and to-do lists, then give Astrid a try. The latest version 4.0 adds a completely new look and adds support for tablets. It also supports sync with Google Tasks, which is a popular feature among to-do apps.

With the Mobile World Congress on the horizon, the top smartphone vendors (Apple, Blackberry, HTC, LG Mobile, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung and Sony) are ramping up products that were introduced and released earlier this year and fine tuning the messaging for the upcoming event that will give them the opportunity to leverage the publicity, innovative mobile accessory launches that accompany these global gatherings. So, Samsung is in a great position to capitalize on the momentum on the world stage for its latest international device, the SamsungGalaxy Note.

As with other Samsung offerings, this unlocked cell phone has gone through a series of transformations before reaching the shores of North America and will align with its American siblings in certain areas. With four touch sensitive buttons under the screen and a Snapdragon S3 chipset under the hood, the 1.5 GHz dual-core Scorpion processor is a differentiator from the Exynos silicon found in the global version of the handset.

And, with the added LTE connectivity, S Pen (stylus and pen), and large 5.3” Super AMOLED screen, this device looks to create its own niche and make its own waves in the mobile device industry. There is a slew of features that make this smartabletphone a good fit for some customers including a microSD slot (a nice consideration for a device that is likely to eat up a lot of storage), video recording in 1080p that has USB host and TV-out support, and full Flash support which is definitely sought out in media playing devices. The specs are long and worth checking out, but I would venture to say that the peripheral devices and accessories that will come along with this device will also be key.

The size of the handset will make headsets and Bluetooth devices all the more imperative for those customers using the Galaxy Note as one-handed use is bound to be tricky. Purchase of a protective accessory that precludes the need to fit this smartabletphone in your pocket is also a likely necessity. All in all, Samsung has created a device that answers the needs of consumers who are looking to consolidate the number of devices they tote around. The functionality will please many, but to truly get the most from this handset, customers will have to plan carefully and invest in the best accessories and peripheral devices to fit their usage and lifestyle – all of which we look forward to seeing and reviewing at the MWC!